At a glance

An incredible voyage to one of the most isolated regions of the world, exploring its unspoiled and spectacular landscape of Greenland

East Greenland is one of the most isolated regions on earth. Inhabited by little more than 3,500 people, it is accessible by ship only five months a year. Nowhere on earth can nature’s most spectacular light show be better seen than in the autumn and winter skies above Greenland’s eastern coast, and this departure offers the best chance to observe the majestic Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights.
On this voyage, we visit the remains of Thule camps, the ancestors of the indigenous people of Greenland, enjoy the splendour of 'iceberg alley' as the ship navigates past majestic icebergs, some over 100 metres high, and get a glimpse into the lifestyle of the remote residents of Ittoqqortoormiit, the most northerly community in East Greenland. This tour also offers once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to hike some of the most pristine wilderness on the planet.

Itinerary

Show detailed itinerary

1Day 1Start Rekjavik, night in hotel.

Our journey begins in Reykjavik where we will overnight in a hotel - pack your bathing suit, so you can relax in a pool heated by geothermal activity near the hotel where you will spend the night.See more images and videos

2Day 2Fly to Akureyri; board the ship and begin exploration.

Fly from Reykavik to the northern Iceland town of Akureyri to begin our expedition to Greenland. As we sail out to sea, our first wildlife sightings will be seabirds above and whales below, get ready for a great adventure!See more images and videos

3Day 3At sea.

Sail through the Denmark Strait en route for mysterious Greenland. The onboard Expedition Team will keep you informed and entertained with presentations about Greenland’s wildlife, history and geography.See more images and videos

4Day 4First of four days spent exploring Greenland National Park.

Fjords and flower meadows punctuate the scenery of Greenland National Park, where Arctic fox and Musk oxen roam free. Out days will be spent exploring and learning about the unique history and geology of Greenland.
King Oscar Fjord is a hiker’s paradise. We may walk across the delicate flower-and-berry-strewn tundra at Holm Bay, Zodiac-cruise through spectacular Alepfjord or take a more challenging climb to the top of nearby Ella Island for spectacular views.
From Ella Island we head to the Antarctic Sound, in the Arctic. The area is home to beautiful purple and gold colored rocks with Ymer Island and Blomsterbugten, the “Bay of Flowers”, ready to explore in the distance.
Keeping a constant eye out for wildlife, we will then head south along the Liverpool Coast. Weather conditions are variable here, but we’ll aim to visit Storefjord and the “warming island” of Uunartoq Qeqertaq, which was only discovered in 2005.See more images and videos

Arriving at Scoresbysund, you'll be mesmerized by the largest, longest, and – some say – most beautiful fjord system in the world. This area was named for William Scoresby, who charted the east coast of Greenland in 1822.
At the start of the sound, Itoqqortoormitt is East Greenland’s most northerly community and one of the world’s last remaining examples of a living hunter society. With clear skies, we’ll have a great opportunity to see the Northern Lights here. You can also support the local Inuit artisans by purchasing unique handicrafts. Our time here is spent bonding with the Inuit people and gaining an appreciation of their way of life.
Sailing on, deeper into Scoresbysund, we’ll encounter massive icebergs and an ancient Thule settlement as we approach Sydkap and Ofjord. The scenery here is something beyond imagination, with towering mountain sides and hundreds of apartment size icebergs playing tricks with your sense of perception.
Pushing onward, this expedition will come to Rypefjord and Kap Hofmann Halvo. We will keep our eyes peeled for sightings of rare blue icebergs, which are more normally seen in the Antarctic. With binoculars in hand, birders should keep watch for wheatears, Snow buntings and ravens at Rypefjord.
At Cape Hofmann Halvo we’ll have our best chance for closer encounters with grazing Musk oxen and enjoy a final hike out on the colourful tundra.See more images and videos

12Day 12The first of two days spent transiting the Denmark Strait between Greenland and Iceland.

Our homeward journey takes us back across the Denmark Strait, where you may spot White-beaked dolphins, and Humpback, Minke and even Blue whales. Birders should keep watch for kittiwakes, gannets, guillemots, fulmars and razorbills. Take a last look at the stunning Aurora Borealis on your final two evenings in magical Greenland!See more images and videos

13Day 13Final day transiting the Denmark Strait between Greenland and Iceland.

Your images

Guided Group

The Ocean Nova takes a maximum capacity of 78 passengers. The Exodus group forms part of the ship’s complement (max of approx. 100), enjoying the relaxed, intimate and informal atmosphere, which breaks into smaller groups to facilitate the frequent excursions. We offer these cruises in conjunction with our partner, Quark Expeditions, and Exodus participants will join an international group, not all of whom have booked through Exodus. Occasionally some of these may be younger than 12 years old, the Exodus' stated minimum age for this trip.

Activity level

You are healthy, enjoy the outdoors and want a relaxing trip. No experience is required.

What's included

What's included

All meals while on the ship

All accommodation (see below)

All transport and listed activities

Tour leader throughout and qualified Expedition Staff

Flights from London (if booking incl. flights)

What's not included

Travel insurance

Single accommodation (available on request)

Visas or vaccinations

Accommodation details

Polar Adventure Ship

The Greenland's Northern Lights is offered on the Polar Adventure ship, Ocean Nova. One night in a standard hotel in Reykjavik included. Full board accommodation on the ship, generally on a twin share basis in a variety of cabin types, all with en suite facilities.

Polar Adventure Ship
These are small (approx.100 passengers) ice rated vessels well qualified for Polar waters. Intimate adventures are always more enjoyable with like-minded passengers and staff, so these voyages are for people who like flexible itineraries and plenty to keep them busy. Activities include frequent Zodiac excursions, trekking, kayaking and many hours on deck in areas that other ships only dream about accessing. Food and staff are superb and every guest benefits from the technical advances of these superb ex-research vessels. The extreme conditions of the Arctic and Antarctic are not to be trifled with: it is shocking the lack of respect some large cruise ships show them. Rest assured our Polar Adventure Ships enable any traveller to maximize their experience sensitively in the Poles.

Essential info

Vaccinations and Visa
No visa required for British passport holders.
There are no specific health risks. Holiday style

Travelling Conditions
The voyages are designed to be as flexible as possible, taking advantage of circumstances and events as they occur, as well as passengers' wishes and particular interests wherever possible. The atmosphere on board is relaxed and friendly with expedition staff, including naturalists and Polar experts, on hand and the opportunity to mingle with people from all over the world. The ship is kept warm, clean and comfortable with a wet/mud room in which to hang gear and store boots ready for the next adventure.

On the Zodiac cruises you are sitting still for most of the time with the potential for some sea spray and a cold headwind - if you are not dressed appropriately you will get cold. On the shore excursions, the majority of landings are wet which means that the Zodiacs beach and you are helped to slide into the ankle deep shore break before walking up onto dry land (wellington boots are issued to all passengers).

There are, of course, no paths, so be prepared for slippery, rough terrain and sometimes fairly deep snow. Back on board the cosy ship after each adventure, you can have a sauna and/or a hot shower and then relax with a tea, coffee, hot chocolate or something stronger from the bar.

Eating & drinking

All meals while on the ship included.

The ships galley offers good quality service and cuisine throughout, with excellent chefs preparing international menus including vegetarian dishes, accompanied by a wide variety of drinks from around the world on sale.

Breakfast: Buffet style - unlimited tea and coffee, a selection of fruit juices, hot options including bacon and eggs or omelettes, a selection of bread and toast and jam/honey/marmalade, fruit and cereal.

Lunch: Three course set meal, or the occasional buffet or BBQ.

Dinner: Three courses with a starter of soup, salad or anti-pasto, a choice of three mains with at least one vegetarian and one seafood option and a dessert of sweet pudding or ice cream or fruit, tea and coffee.

Reviews & community

Overall a memorable experience, made acquaintance with so many like minded adventurers from all over the world, and saw wonderfully unspoiled and pristine land. Northern Lights displays exceeded expectations.

What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

Sighting Northern Lights not once, not twice, but three times !

What did you think of your group leader?

Dutch very approachable, friendly, yet extremely efficient and aware of his responsibility to each and everyone on board.

Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

Go for it, be bold and when you get there relax and enjoy a memorable yet unpredictable adventure. In such remote areas nothing can be taken for granted and changes to the itinerary make the trip even more exciting !

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Go, even by yourself, if you cannot find any like minded explorers, you will NOT feel alone!!

A rare and thrilling experience with all objectives met and exceeded. Fantastic views of the Northern Lights and up close viewing of Polar Bears, Ice and Icebergs....

What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

1. Northern Lights on both the first and second nights at sea, not to mention further views later in the trip.

2. Seeing Polar bears on Ice flows close to the ship, 2 individual bears with fresh kills and a family (mother and 2 cubs (approx 2 years old)...

3. Bird life, including Falcon and Snowy Owl....

What did you think of your group leader?

Dutch was excellent, very knowledgeable, enthusiastic, informative and always considering/weighing up the options to make out trip the best ever.

He worked well with both the other expedition staff (who were also all superb) and the Ship's Captain/Crew.

Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

The Arctic is a wild and changing landscape, so go with an open mind, expect the unexpected and you won't be disappointed.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

The ship we were on Akademik Sergey Vavilov is a great ship (a Scientific ship, not a cruise liner) and really fits the bill for travelling in both the Arctic and Antarctic. It was a pleasure to travel once again on this ship and it enhanced the overall experience.

This whole trip was mind blowing at times considering the scenery, wildlife, culture and wild terrain encountered.

We had a diverse and multi cultural experience with a vast number of different Nationalities on the ship, which ultimately added to the experience.

I had a fantastic experience, I feel suitably richer in both body and sole (if not actually financial) and look forward to future trips in and around the Arctic.

Probably the very best way in a short time to see and understand eastern Greenland, its awesome scenery and a remoteness unfamiliar to the vast majority of us. Titling it 'Northern Lights' though was perhaps risky and could be misleading; we did see them but only just and was certainly not the highlight for me.

What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

The vastness and sense of being the only human-beings for hundreds of miles around.

What did you think of your group leader?

Highly experienced and effective in getting the very best for us whatever the circumstances, his enthusiasm for the country was infectious.

Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

Be capable and enthusiastic about getting out and about in the Zodiacs and on the tundra. This is not a leisurely, luxury cruise. Having said that, there's plenty for everyone with even modest mobility, the food and on-board talks are really exellent, the accomodation more than adequate and I for one enjoy the slightly 'studentish' feeling of this essentially research vessel (I'm over 70 and the vessel is the RS 'Vavilov').

Is there anything else you would like to add?

The voyage starts at Reykjavik. If at all possible, add a few days beforehand to see that city (a day and a bit covers most things) and to make some excursions in the surrounding area of SW Iceland. Websites and hotels and the hospitable people make this very easy to organise oneself. But Greenland is the highlight so better 'do' Iceland before rather than after to avoid any anti-climax.

It's the in-depth knowledge and enthusiasm of the 'expert' leaders that transforms this from a sight-seeing trip to a really enjoyable learning experience.

Questions about your trip

Pick your question

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